Synergy Investment Management LLC Purchases Shares of 300 Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL)

Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $69,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of RCL. National Pension Service grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.9% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 864,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,327,000 after acquiring an additional 502,349 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Royal Caribbean Cruises during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $69,556,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its position in Royal Caribbean Cruises by 2,042.8% during the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 122,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,349,000 after acquiring an additional 117,152 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises by 138.2% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 161,835 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,703,000 after purchasing an additional 93,899 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in the third quarter worth approximately $14,544,000. 87.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Royal Caribbean Cruises

In other news, Director Richard D. Fain sold 19,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.68, for a total transaction of $5,005,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 185,021 shares in the company, valued at $47,491,190.28. This trade represents a 9.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jason T. Liberty sold 58,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.95, for a total value of $15,193,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 143,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,514,907.30. The trade was a 28.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 109,492 shares of company stock valued at $28,571,705. 7.95% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Stock Performance

Shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock opened at $226.67 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 2.59. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $244.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $217.40. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has a 12 month low of $124.24 and a 12 month high of $277.08.

Royal Caribbean Cruises (NYSE:RCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.13. Royal Caribbean Cruises had a return on equity of 48.97% and a net margin of 17.46%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.25 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will post 14.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Royal Caribbean Cruises declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. This is a positive change from Royal Caribbean Cruises’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Royal Caribbean Cruises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Argus raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $280.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $271.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Royal Caribbean Cruises has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $284.12.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Company Profile

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. operates as a cruise company worldwide. The company operates cruises under the Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea Cruises brands, which comprise a range of itineraries. As of February 21, 2024, it operated 65 ships. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.